Ahrefs is a well-known name among SEO tools. Many have found it reliable and efficient, including bloggers, webmasters, and SEO professionals.
Among its many tools is the Site Explorer, which helps you find hundreds of expired domains for search engine optimization.
In this article, you will learn how to find Ahrefs expired domains, what other tools you need, and alternatives to consider.
Expired domains are domain names that have passed their expiration date without being renewed, whether by accident or purposefully. As a result, they expire and are put up for anyone to register after the grace period passes.
Expired domains have great value and are much sought after by SEOs because of their existing backlinks, domain authority, and possible traffic.
Expired domains offer SEO benefits that you can't get from new domains. The best part is that, besides their extra value, these domains often come as cheap as new domains. Their price falls between $12 and $14, making them cost-effective.
Here are some key reasons for using expired domains:
One major factor determining an expired domain's value is its links. Expired domains linking to a main site can transfer their authority, which is called link juice. When you link to an expired domain with quality links, you capitalize on this link juice.
Expired domains with a clean history and quality backlinks passing their link juice to your main site will help improve your domain authority. Thus, your site can establish its high-authority and enhance its ranking.
Buying an expired domain in your niche can also help you leverage its existing traffic from previous users or backlinks. Visitors will find the new site, and if the content interests them, they will stick around and become repeat visitors.
You can use expired domains in several ways:
A private blog network is a collection of websites built to link to the money site. PBNs are usually built using expired domains that have robust backlink profiles that can benefit your leading site.
You can also create a website using a high-quality expired name that already has traffic and authority.
This is much better than using fresh domains because, unlike new ones, you don't have to build your marketing and SEO efforts from scratch. These authority domains provide you with a greater advantage and save money and effort.
Using 301 redirects is another way you may take advantage of expired domains. 301 redirects will let your visitors and the search engine know that your content has permanently left that site to a new location. The search engine will then redirect visitors to the new site.
Besides traffic, it also transfers SEO value to the existing website, ensuring the SEO benefit is not lost.
Let's quickly go over the processes required to find Ahrefs expired good domains:
● Create an account at Ahrefs.com if you do not now have one.
● Pluck the competitor's website or an authoritative site in a niche into the Ahrefs site explorer.
● Click the "Outgoing Links" tab to access the "Broken Links" section.
● To guarantee you're looking for worthwhile backlinks, select "dofollow" links.
● Click "Export" to obtain the broken link list as a CSV file.
● Open the CSV file in your Microsoft Excel.
● Use a website checker to trim the URLs to separate the domain name.
● Check for domain availability using a domain registrar such as GoDaddy or Name.com.
● Register the domain name.
Let us now get further into it in more specifics:
The first step is to sign up for Ahrefs. Signing up will help you get an Ahrefs account. This tool comes with fees. If you don't intend to use it for long, consider using the 7-day trial, which costs just $7. The trial can be ideal if you can finish your work in one week and do not intend to use it after that.
Login to your Ahref site explorer and type in the name of the authority site you need to find. Once you click search, Ahrefs will show the website statistics.
Ahrefs will display each domain's URL rating. This ranking shows how authoritative the site is, so the higher the score, the higher the authority.
The next step is to select Broken Links under Outgoing Links. This is different from the broken links under the Backlink Profile. Click on Link Type using the filter at the top and select Dofollow.
Dofollow links are crawlable by searches like Google, allowing them to understand and access your content. These links transfer link juice to the linked sites, making them great for SEO.
Once the links appear, export Ahrefs broken links as a CSV file by clicking Export and selecting the export type ‘Full Export.’
After you export the CSV file on your computer, you can open the list of domains through Microsoft Excel. So, you must first download the Microsoft Excel package on your computer.
Next, open the file in Excel and go to the column for the Link URL. Highlight all the links and copy them using Ctrl + C.
To be able to bulk check the domains, you need to edit them from the broken URL. So paste the copied links to another site, Website SEO Checker, in the given box. There will be several commands you can opt for below the box. Tick ‘remove duplicates’ and ‘convert domains to lowercase.’
The sorting out process will take a little while. Once you're done separating the domains, go to the result box and copy them out.
Not all these domains will be available, so you must check to see which is currently available for registration. You will find these domains on a domain registrar. Name.com is a domain registrar that allows you to search for domains in bulk.
Head to the Name.com homepage and click the Domain tab. Under there, select Bulk Domain Search. You may see an arrow directly pointing you to Bulk Domain. Once it directs you to the page, you can paste your domain list or upload it as a file. Then click Show All TLDs and click the search button.
Name.com will let you see if they are available. Carefully copy the domains with high value that are available back into your spreadsheet and save them.
The value of an expired domain are not all the same. Some may be irrelevant due to their low quality and lack of authority. Thus, it's essential to check the quality and health of its backlinks to know if the domain is a good investment. Here are areas to look at before buying a domain:
Your domain authority (DA) refers to how authoritative a domain is, while page authority (PA) refers to the possibility of a webpage ranking high on search engines. Both metrics determine a website's trustworthiness.
But what DA and PA scores are good enough? Although SEOs look for domains with scores of over 90, it doesn't come easy.
Generally speaking, you should aim for a score over 50. To check a domain authority, use checker tools. Website SEO checkers are a great option.
Bulk SEO Tools is another free tool for checking scores, but the number of domains you can check at a time is limited, so if you have a long list, you may have to go several times.
Trust flow shows how trustworthy a domain name is. This metric, designed by Majestic, helps you determine the trustworthiness of any domain.
The trust flow score ranges from 0 to 100. For an expired domain, you should aim for a score above 50. Anything below may not be good enough. While there are other free tools for checking Trust Flow, Majestic remains the best tool available, although it's not free.
Some expired domains may have been used for spamming, making them a lousy pick. Checking the spam score helps you know if it's been engaged in spamming activities.
This works by checking the difference between the number of backlinks and the number of referring domains.
If there are too many backlinks coming from just a few websites, they will be flagged as spammy. The more unique links there are, the lower the spam score.
You can also use website SEO checker tools to check this score by pasting each link.
You can also check the strength and authority of your website's backlink profile on Ahrefs using its free proprietary tool, Domain Rating (DR).
The tool grades on a scale of 0 to 100, which means the higher the score, the higher the domain’s authority. The Domain Rating tool is helpful in determining your domain’s authority by using both quality and quantity to calculate the score.
Registering the domains you have determined to be worth buying comes last. To register a domain, choose a respectable registrar such as GoDaddy or Namecheap. Always consider factors like additional services, hidden charges, and customer support when selecting.
Search for the domain name in the search box and follow the registration prompts to register. Once you complete the registration and set up DNS settings, you will need to provide contact details and payment information.
While Ahrefs is an excellent tool for discovering expired domains, another tool can yield faster results. Premium expired domain finders that require payment can help you find domains much faster.
We recommend Domainhunter Gatherer. As its name suggests, it hunts for high-quality expired domains and gathers them. Thus, you don't have to stress about finding high-quality domains.
All you need to do is type in a keyword or website niche, and it will hunt for thousands of expired domains with good backlink profiles. This can be a great option if you don't have the time or knowledge to go through the longer process Ahrefs provides.
Ahrefs allows you to view expired domains by running the "Site Explorer" tool. To get a list of expired domains' backlinks, register and type in an authoritative domain of interest.
While Ahrefs is powerful, you need other tools to complete your domain search. These tools include a domain checker tool like Website SEO Checker, Microsoft Excel to organize your links, and bulk domain search tools like Name.com.
You also need metric tools like Trust Flow by Majesty and DA and spam score checkers to assess the domain's health and authority.
Ahrefs does not track when a domain is due to expire. However, its backlink data might help you find worthwhile websites that are no longer active. Once you locate one, you can buy it or track its status using a domain registrar.
Now that you know how to use Ahrefs to find quality expired domains and alternative ways, the next step is to begin your journey. Here are some tips to help you perform your domain research efficiently:
● Ensure you look for domains relevant to your niche instead of random ones.
● Regularly monitor industry trends and competitors' strategies.
● Use multiple tools alongside Ahrefs for comprehensive analysis.
● Be patient; finding valuable expired domains may take time but can yield significant long-term benefits when done correctly.
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